China urges int'l community to do more for Mali's peace, stability

A Chinese envoy on Thursday called on the international community to do whatever it can to help bring peace and stability to Mali.

"The international community should bear in mind the overall situation of maintaining regional stability, actively provide help and support, and do more things that are conducive to peace and stability in Mali," Dai Bing, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, told a Security Council meeting on the situation in Mali.

Dai said China commends the continuous communication on the political transition between parties concerned and hopes that the parties will reach an agreement as soon as possible to push the political process forward on the right track.

The international community should support the transitional authority of Mali in accordance with the consensus reached at the National Reconstruction Conference to advance the reform process, implement the peace agreement, formulate and implement a comprehensive strategy for the central region, and help Mali embark on the development path that suits its national conditions, he added.

On combatting terrorism, the envoy said "there should be no slack in the fight against terrorism. We should continue to support the Malian Government's efforts to combat terrorism and maintain stability, help it step up capacity-building, and respect its right to international security cooperation."

"China has noted the concerns in some media reports about human rights violations in the counter-terrorism operations in the Moura region," said Dai, adding that the Malian side has already made clarifications, emphasizing that relevant actions were aimed at rescuing local people, and that they have always respected human rights and were willing to conduct relevant investigations.

"China hopes that all sides will exercise restraint, and avoid making groundless accusations before any conclusion is reached by the investigation," Dai said.

Referring to the economic situation in the landlocked country in West Africa, Dai said that 42.7 percent of Malian people live in extreme poverty and 7.5 million people need humanitarian assistance, wth 960,000 children under the age of five suffering from severe malnutrition.

The international community must not forget about the difficulties faced by African countries such as Mali, and African development issues should not be marginalized, he noted.

"As a good friend of African countries, China will continue to stand by African countries, accelerate the implementation of the Global Development Initiative and the outcomes of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, and continue to support Mali and other African countries in their economic recovery," Dai said.